Category: Hairy Dieters

So after a very unhealthy Birthday week, here are some much needed vegetables!

Another simple recipe from The Hairy Dieters that can be made as a side dish or a main meal. I decided to add halloumi for a slightly more bulked out dinner.

Ok so I may not have had a red onion so I had to make do with white, but it still worked! You can’t go wrong with a coriander and chilli dressing – it brought everything together and the powerful flavour of the red wine vinegar packed in that little punch. Although, they suggest if you don’t fancy the chilli dressing, you can always use a good balsamic vinegar instead.

Cooking the veg on the griddle made the whole meal look so much more visually exciting. I have invested in a Hairy Bikers griddle pan as it’s the perfect size for me. However it is quite a pain to clean!

After a few drinks last night the salty halloumi went down a treat. And with those colourful peppers and courgette I felt I gave my body that little thanks for putting up with all the pizza I seem to have eaten lately!

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I know it’s been a few months since my last post, but I’m back in the driving seat and ready to share more teatimegems!

Firstly if you are interested in growing your recipe book collection then head to the car boot! From 50p – £1 per book you will save yourself a fortune whilst quickly transforming your bookshelves. It’s amazing how new some of the books are that you will find… one man’s trash is another man’s treasure!

Quite an easy recipe to kick things off again. This is a Hairy Dieters recipe from their book How to Love Food and Lose Weight. You can find the recipe online here.

It’s amazing that with a simple mix of smoked paprika and oregano, and a dash of chorizo you have Spain knocking at your door… well your oven at least! It’s an easy one to remember as it’s all broken down into 5 straight forward 20minute stages that are a breeze to follow.

The potatoes start to absorb those juicy chicken flavours that have been muddled with chorizo, and the tomatoes are perfectly roasted without being overly soft. I think chicken thighs are understated really, they are so succulent and flavoursome… and a fraction of the price. Overall a really wholesome meal to edge you into Autumn.

Plus you will have the perfect ratio of food to washing up – lot’s of food and next to no washing up!!

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Although we were slightly worried about the colour when they came out the oven, but a flash fry and they soon got their tan on!

This is from The Hairy Dieters Eat For Life book. It just stood out as something we should try. It’s a far cheaper alternative without feeling you are missing out. And I’ve just realised it’s the first turkey recipe I have made to post about!

The flavour from the leaks and courgette mixed with the turkey created a flavour I wasn’t expecting, but a flavour that I would happily have again! The relish is a simple addition that brings that extra kick of life to the meal. We missed out the buns as we cooked the meal for four when only three of us were eating… but who wouldn’t prefer more meat and no bread?! It was really filling and only took an hour to make – so it will only get faster with practice!

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Because this certainly takes longer than the recipe advises. Don’t get me wrong, the chicken is a new taste experience (one might even say Christmassy!), but it’s just too much effort (and I didn’t even make it)!

If you do feel compelled to cook this you can find the Hairy Dieter’s recipe here. All I would say is after so long purely creating the cooking environment for the chicken, you’ll probably want something a bit more substantial and exciting than… lentils. Sorry for all you lentil lovers out there; but it’s just not my thing!

At the end of the day, healthy eating should still be exciting… so make sure you’re still cooking and eating things you can love.

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The last salsa verde we made was a disaster but this light version works a treat!

Another one from The Hairy Dieters Good Eating book… don’t worry though we have been kindly given a new Jamie Oliver book for next week to balance it out a bit!

This is dead easy to do, the only thing that took time were the potato wedges (which we chose over the tomato and onion salad). I’m not sure the salsa verde was quite as it should have been… perhaps our measurements of a ‘large bunch’ and ‘small bunch’ aren’t quite accurate! The egg yolk mixture didn’t cover the herbs as well as it should have, so we blitzed it up in the food processor. This added to our doubts after the last one we made… but it goes to show that different variations of recipes are worth trying! I think ours ended up just a tad, shall we say… ‘rustic’!

We found the pork didn’t take as long to cook as suggested, but the pork we used was pre diced so may well have been smaller than the suggested 3cm chunks. But it’s just down to keeping an eye on it. The marinade is really versatile as you can make it the night before, or just half an hour before you would like to eat – so it can fit into everyone’s schedules. In all honesty we were surprised at how much we liked the dish considering its simplicity!

There is probably some greenery missing here… but it was just me and the two lads so it didn’t get put very high on the priority list!

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Might not be what you fancy in this cold weather, but for those on their January health kicks – it’s perfect.

This is from The Hairy Dieters Good Eating book which is serving us well so far! Although it would be handy if they had a website like Jamie Oliver’s to give you all links for…

If you like ginger then you will love the dressing (although it’s not quite to my taste). With it being quick and easy to prepare, it’s perfect for those busy nights. I know i’ve struggled to stay ‘good’ so far this month with people bringing in birthday treats and left over Christmas goodies. So after a bit of a cheat day you can end the day feeling you’ve tried (at least a little bit) to balance it out just a tad! And if you leave out the sugar it’s even suitable for the Juice Plus diet too!

Salads might not be the most exciting meal to come home to – but with the steak, this is filling and leaves you feeling fresh!

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This is another recipe from the Hairy Dieters Book 3 – Good Eating. We served it with salad and sweet potato chips which worked really well. I guess when people (including myself) think of meatballs they naturally think of a tomato sauce and spaghetti… or Lady and The Tramp. But either way, there’s definitely more scope to them than that! And this recipe proves it.

The meatballs are so soft and have an amazing flavour – and dipped in the garlic sauce you’ll be in food heaven! I am having to hold back from adding it to everything; it was that tasty.

The only time consumer in this recipe is forming the meatballs but you’re not going to get something this unique without putting in a little love (and flavour)!